A Review by Richard Radcliffe 27/9/04
The second of BBV's Stranger series is a pretty good effort, with some startling ideas and imagery. Colin Baker and Nicola Bryant return as the Stranger and Miss Brown, and this time they are on the paradise planet of Majus 17. It's a place for tourists to rest and revel in the simple life, and the Stranger is taking advantage of this on a chair on a stony shore. Miss Brown, like her alter ego with the same name, is a little bored with this set-up - and they are quickly split up.
On this paradise planet is the Dartons, an elderly couple, who inhabit a quaint log cabin. They too have escaped the hustle and bustle, for Bernard (played by Peter Miles) - the husband - to create his own kind of mayhem. There's also a couple of loud students - Nic (played by the writer Nigel Fairs) and Mark, intent to make as much noise as possible. The only other characters we get to know belong to the planet itself - the Girl (played by Sophie Aldred) being the main one (there's also an Ape Creature who jumps out and scares people every now and again). These are the major players, and there's plenty for the 40 minutes that it occupies our screens.
Like most I expect, I came to these dramas through it's parent show DW, and it is the actors who inhabited that universe who create the most interest - and get the juiciest parts. Colin Baker is sufficiently mysterious as the Stranger - it's a much more restrained character than the Doctor, and there's more actually in what we don't know about him, than what we know - it's all part of the mystery. Nicola Bryant has a lot to do both as Miss Brown, and more impressively as an alternative image for the Girl - she rises to the challenge. Peter Miles gives us a driven, obsessed portrayal of attempted control. Sophie Aldred does very well as the nymph-like Girl who just wants companionship, but whose powers are stronger than at first they appear.
The story, by Nigel Fairs, is good. He gives his characters some good dialogue, and the whole environmental aspect is nicely played without being an "in your face" Green message. The locations are okay, which always seem to be an island cut off from the rest of the world. The direction by Bill Baggs is good - making full use of the actors and settings at his disposal. Only trouble is it never seems like an alien planet. There's a few attempts, like the paintbrush green sky, but this brought the whole thing down as it reminded me of Mindwarp - the sixth Doctor Trial of a Time-Lord story. The Stranger could at least have had a proper deck chair at the beginning too.
Majus 17 also came across as too cold for a paradise planet, everyone seemed all wrapped up (and what on earth is Colin Baker wearing?).There seemed a definite chill in the air, and I couldn't imagine very many people coming to such a place. The best aspect of the planet was the Girl's lair in the caves. There's some nice scenes with Colin and Sophie in there too. My other favourite parts were the beach scenes, in spite of the lack of deckchair, particularly when the Girl in Miss Brown's form challenges the Stranger about some important truths.
The whole production is well worth watching, if only to see some fine performances by four DW notables. The BBV team know how to tell a good story, and the presentation is consistently good. More Than a Messiah pulled me into its web, and I quite enjoyed hanging in there for while. 7/10